An Unknown Ninja
by zoro-lover-95
Summary: An Unknown Ninja is about Roronoa Zoro as a Naruto character who is an exiled ninja from Ore Village and becomes a Konoha shinobi. Contains torture scenes. ZoroxSakura possible others later on. Please R&R!
1. Exiled Ninja

Hey people! If you've already read this story (or parts of it) you'll know that I've changed it some. I felt the plot was lacking & speed was very inconsistent, so I'm rewriting the first 10 chapters. After that, I'll write more!

Disclaimer: If I owned any anime, I wouldn't be writing a fanfic for one!

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Zoro POV

As I ran through the forest surrounding the village I'd lived in my whole life, I thought about the irony of the whole situation. I'd just been declared a criminal, a missing nin, but I felt more free than I had in my whole fucking life. Those bastards back in Ore sure knew how to show their appreciation…

_Flashback:_

"_Damn it!" the Otikage_ _roared to his advisor, oblivious to the boy eavesdropping on the conversation. "That demon kid, a mere genin, keeps showing up all my other nin, even the jounin! I can't stand the little prick. The village would be better off without him…" _

"_Sir," his advisor began, "couldn't we just have him exiled. It's not like anyone would defend him. Think about it. He becomes a missing nin & gets added to the bingo book. Then-"he was cut off by the Otikage._

"_Yes, but then he could join another village before his exiled status is known of. We cannot afford to have him join the forces of another hidden village. He is much too strong." _

"_Well, that being the case, we will just have to send out teams to assassinate of the village will be happy. I'm sure everyone assigned to the task will be glad to help. We can send out 5 teams of chunnin and jounin."_

"_Alright," agreed the Otikage, "but send Domori Ritan. If you do, this mission should be a guaranteed success."_

"_Of course, Otikage-Sama"_

I'm not an idiot, so as soon as I heard the advisor's response, I left the village. Which brings me to where I am now, being chased out of the village by 5 squads of Ore nin. Not that I'm complaining too much. Sure, I'll have to find a new life elsewhere & leave my apartment in the village, but Ore never was a 'home', just a place. The Otikage hadn't even sent me on a decent mission in a year. No bigger shocker why… Unlike many people in the situation I found myself in, I didn't want to just run. I wanted a good fight.

As much as I wanted one, I wasn't going to just turn around and face them. If I did, the village would have more crap to put out of context & use against me, & I'd waste energy. Since I had no clue what I was doing or where I was going, I decided to conserve my chakra & energy as much as possible. But still, if I came upon Domori Ritan, I'd no doubt fight him. My goal's to be the best swordsman ever, & since he was the best in Rock Country, me beating him would make me the best, not that anyone would acknowledge I beat him… I'd know how strong I was though.

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**A/N** My muse, Amy, told me some of you might not have understood what I meant by 'showing up'. I meant sort of proving better than, but the Otikage saw it as Zoro being snotty & wanted an excuse to be mad at him.

Please R&R! This is my first story ever, and I'll try to make my chapters longer, but I have a girl scouts meeting soon and need to hurry up if I want this out tonight!


	2. A long awaited fight

**A/N **Hi people! Again, I'm editing my past chapters to fix them up some. This was actually one of my best before fixing it up, so there will probably be fewer changes than in the first chapter. I hope you enjoy!

Disclaimer: As much work as I put into pestering anime writers for their shows, you'd think I actually owned one!

**Zoro POV:**

I ran and ran. Honestly, it felt great to finally do something. After I'd run a bit more, I heard (or more like didn't hear) the running of the squad that was pursuing me. I immediately stopped, not wanted to be caught off guard. If it was a fight they wanted, a fight they'd get. Those bastards wouldn't catch me by surprise.

After a few minutes of silent waiting, I spotted them and was in luck. Chuunin were in front and behind them was none other than Domori Ritan, the great swordsman. Turned out I would have a chance to test myself. I easily used my new technique, Nana-Jyuu Pound Hou* to blast away the chuunin, knocking them all out. Ore sure had low standards! Finally I had the chance to test my true strength.

No POV:

"Hello Domori Ritan," taunted Zoro, "how are you this lovely day? I see you had the whim to take a walk as well. And by the way," Zoro gave a short comic bow, "I am _absolutely honored _to meet you."

"Cut the crap, Roronoa. I don't know why you have suddenly become a missing nin, but orders are orders, so I must kill you now, not that I won't enjoy it," said the master swordsman, a smirk plastered on his face.

"Orders only go so far, you'd have to beat me first," Zoro retorted while analyzing his soon to be opponent and fingering his old forehead protector. Though he always wore it during challenging battles, he was no longer a ninja of the Ore. Instead he opted for throwing it at his opponent's feet.

Ritan got the message, "I see."

"Do you?" asked Zoro, "We'll just have to find out." As he finished speaking, he placed his third sword in his mouth preparing his specialty attack.

"Oni Giri!*" he yelled, running towards his pursuer ready to test his skill. As he rushed past him, he noticed that Ritan managed to dodge the bulk of the attack only receiving a small slice on his bicep.

"Well, at least you know how to fight," Ritan sighed, "but that does not mean you have the ability to beat me. No one has since I was your age, a mere 14 year old."

"I guess that makes sense," Zoro agreed, "since you've never fought me before."

"I guess reasoning will do no good," commented Ritan. "That makes sense though. I just told you I'm here to kill you. So why not put up a fight? You'll die either way. Be prepared to face my sword!"

Zoro smiled, actually SMILED, a real honest smile, "Well, let's fight!"

"Rokku Silas~!" cried Ritan, barely touching Zoro's side.

On they went volleying attacks, landing minor scratchs on each other for a while until Ritan finally spoke, "Good job lasting so far. You are the best I've ever fought, but I must now get serious. No more play fighting."

"I'm glad you think so. I was getting tired of this sparring!" Zoro retorted.

"kyojin ken shissou~!" yelled Ritan as he ran as quick faster than wind (or Lee without his weights). A second later, a cry of pain could be heard escaping Zoro's lips. The entire front of his chest had been sliced open, from left shoulder to right hip.

"Damn you," Zoro said through gritted teeth, swaying slightly as he spoke. "I'm gonna kill you for that!"

Ritan couldn't believe his ears. "Yeah right! In that condition you couldn't hurt a fly, much less kill me! I bet you won't live 5 more minutes," he sneered.

"Yeah? I hope you enjoy death then," Zoro retorted, then yelled out his final attacks. "Ushi Bari*! Tou Rou Nagashi*!"

Domori Ritan was now unconscious and heavily wounded. Zoro dragged him over to a nearby road, where, if he was lucky, someone would find him. The great swordsman had just been beaten by a 'mere genin' named Roronoa Zoro.

Zoro POV:

I finally beat that arrogant bastard, but could barely stand. Even though I felt like collapsing on the side of the road, I knew that others could come across me. Anyways, I needed a doctor, bad. Ritan had been right in a way; I wouldn't last long without medical attention. From my lessons at the ninja academy I recalled that the nearest non-rock country Hidden Village was Konoha. Since I'd been going south, it would only be about a days walk if I went fast. I had to try. There was no way I'd give up then.

A day and a lot of pain later, I saw the gates of the Hidden Leaf in the distance. As they saw me approach, I saw the confusion and fear on the guards faces. Well, except one. The black haired guard just looked bored.

When I reached the gate, I could barely stand. With the last of my strength I murmured out, "hospital...now," before passing out from pain & exhaustion.

**A/N** Amy (my muse for those of you who don't know!!!) likes to see Zoro in pain, so if you don't like it, get over it or don't read! No flames please O.O

* In order of use, attack names: (from show)

Nana-Jyuu Pound Hou=72 pound cannon

Oni Giri=Demon Slash

Ushi Bari=Bull Charge

Tou Rou Nagashi=Hunting the Wolf

~In order of use, attack names: (I made them using a translater…)

Rokku Silas=Rock Slice

Kyojin ken shissou=giant blade dash


	3. Cousins?

Please R&R!!!

LadyCalus: Thank you for telling me! It's fixed now! Also, you're my first reviewer. Congrats!

Was my last chapter alright? I know I'm not great at fight scenes, so that's why I didn't write it all. Also though you'd get bored if I did…

So, yeah… I better do my disclaimer so the little flying monkeys don't sue me. Yeah people, as amazing as it may seem, I don't own Naruto or Zoro, but I do own this story… and a really good root beer float!

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**Tsunade POV:**

I wish I could just leave all this paperwork and get some saki right now… and that the paper work would just disappear. Just as I signed my 198th paper of the hour, Shikamaru, Konoha's newest chunin ran in.

"Hokage-Sama!" Shikamaru said as excitably as he ever does, "a strange guy with green hair just walked up to the main gate. He's severely wounded. We brought him to the hospital. He has yet to regain consciousness."

"Shikamaru? Is that you? You just went a whole report without sayi-" "It was troublesome," Shikamaru interrupted.

"Nevermind," I grumbled, "does he have any identification on, or a forehead protector?"

"No. His only really noticeable characteristics are the 3 swords he carries and his green hair."

"Green hair? I haven't heard of that before," I told him.

"I have." He said. Of course he has… "my cousin from Hidden Ore has green hair."

"Ok? I'll check in on him now," I told him. Yes! Score for the hokage!!! No paperwork for the rest of the day, I thought.

**Zoro POV:**

I cracked open my eyes and moaned as I took in my surroundings. I was in a white room, probably the hospital, though it seemed that no one had checked on me yet, since my wound hadn't been handled yet, only cleaned, so blood was still escaping. I hoped the nurse here would deal with it soon. The time was only making it hurt worse, I realized as I tried to sit up. Once I'd decided that lying down would probably be more comfortable, a busty blonde woman walked into the room. She looked surprised when she saw me conscious.

"Hi, who are you?" I managed to ask.

"I should be asking the same of you," she retorted. Couldn't blame her. I had just shown up on the edge of the village, asked to be brought to the hospital, then passed out. No one here knew who I was. "You can tell me later. For now your health needs to be taken care of. Shikamaru," she called, "please bring in a glass of water and get Shizune to bring some stuff to clean his wound again!" then grumbled, "I can't believe they didn't take care of this earlier…"

I was shocked to say the least. "Sh-Shikama-ru?" I managed to stutter out. My cousin, Shikamaru was here? I had apparently reached Konoha like I'd planned. Still, I didn't want him to see me like this. Hopefully he wouldn't recognize me. As the bored boy who'd been at the gate walked in, looked at me like he might've seen me before. It must be him.

"Shikamaru-neesan," I said, gathering the confused look on his face which quickly changed to recognition, "nice to see you again."

"Zoro!? I thought I'd recognized you. What the hell happened to you? Your freakin' chest is sliced open!" he exclaimed with a look of worry on his face.

"Um…"

"You can tell us after I'm done taking care of your wounds if you still have the energy, though I doubt you will with a wound like this. I'm amazed you're still alive," the busty nurse said, saving me from having to explain yet.

"Sure."

When she pressed the wet cloth to the slice on my front, I winced against my minds orders. She looked at me like she was prepared for me to pass out from that. It hurt, but not bad enough for that. Also, I wouldn't pass out a second time in the day in front of Shikamaru. When she saw I was still conscious, she started cleaning the wound again. This time I was prepared and gritted my teeth.

After a short time, she finished cleaning my front and moved to cleaning and bandaging the various slices and scrapes on the rest of my body. I guessed she was saving the worst for last.

When she finished everything else, she shot me a glance of pity and began focusing her chakra on my chest. Let me tell you, in case you've never had someone heal a bad wound before, it hurts, a lot. I gritted my teeth and shut my eyes, 'till about she murmed something unintelligible.

"Damn kid," she said, "I'm the best medical nin there is, and even I can't use just healing techniques for this. I'll have to use stitches. Shikamaru, please tell Shizune to get me some thread and a needle. Zoro?"

"Yeah?" I responded.

"I'm curious to hear your story. Not many jounin I know could withstand that wound and travel any distance with it, and you're still awake after that," the nurse said. Then with a small smile, "I guess I should thank you though. You just saved me from a good deal of paperwork. You know, I never knew a few months ago just how much boring paperwork was a part of being Hokage."

Now it was my turn to be surprised. It was the hokage who was tending to my wounds? "You're," I began, "the hokage?"

"Yeah," she said with a smile, "only came here today 'cause I heard you were heard pretty bad. I didn't think you'd be hurt this bad though. Tell me, how can you stand it?"

"What?" I asked.

"The pain," the Hokage said as if it was obvious.

"Um… how do I stand it?"

"Yeah. You're conscious and haven't cried out from it."

"Well, I can deal with a large amount with out passing out and crying out from it doesn't change how much it hurts, so why would I?"

**Tsunade POV:**

This kid was more mature than most people I knew… and I knew a lot of people. What had his life been like to see things that that? Also, he was Shikamaru's cousin!? Did that make him Nara Zoro? Ugh, so confusing…

While I was trying to figure out how to react, Shizune and Shikamaru returned with my supplies.

"Thank you," I said to them. "Now Zoro, time to get you patched up."

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So, what do you guys think?

Zoro: Um… Well you complemented me so that's a good thing I guess, but where's the action?

Me: Last chapter and more later on, dumb ass!

Zoro: I'LL GO K-, sleep now. *yawns*

Shikamaru: very troublesome… I'm gonna go watch the clouds now.

Me: Grrrr…

Tsunade: It's good. Thank you for relieving my of paperwork. If only Shizune would do that, too…

Shizune: Tsunade! It's your dut-

Tsunade:*sighs* I know

Me: Um… This chapter was a little longer than the others. Enjoy! Make sure to click on that pretty button with the green writing and leave me a review!


	4. His story

So, how'd you guys like my last chapter?

I wouldn't have to ask if you just reviewed!!!

This is my 4th chapter and I've gotten only 1 review, so do so!!!

Enjoy! Oh yeah… I don't own Naruto or Zoro or that root beer float I had the other day, but I do own a lot of the other stuff in this story!

Oh yeah, sorry for the random lines, but it seems my computer puts them in at the end of each page. Whether you see them or not, I don't know…

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**Zoro POV:**

I'd never gotten stitches before, but they weren't as bad as I'd thought they'd be.

After not too long, the busty nur- er, hokage finished and looked up at me questioningly.

"What?" I asked.

"Um…" she began, "Do you feel well enough to tell us what happened, why you're here, and where your family are so we can get you back to them?

"Yeah," I began, "but the last one might be difficult…"

"Why?" Shikamaru asked. "I'm sure Aunt and Uncle are very worried about you."

"They would be, if they were alive," I simply stated.

"Oh… I'm sorry," said Tsunade, the hokage.

"What?" Shikamaru said.

So I explained, a little, very little… "They died when I was about 5 and I'm 14 now, so… 9 years ago."

"That would explain why I haven't seen you in so long," Shikamaru began, "well, that and inter-village travel…"

**Tsunade POV:**

While it was sad that his parents were dead, it wasn't exactly relevant to know what happened, I thought.

"Zoro, I'm sorry your parents are dead, but could you please tell us what happened and why you're here?" I said, getting straight to the point. Then he sighed and began his story.

"Well, basically it started when the Otikage declared me an exiled nin and sent 5 squads out to kill me."

"WHAT!?" everyone in the room exclaimed. Why was he an exiled nin? What had he done! How- Shikamaru interrupted my thoughts.

"Zoro, how could you be an exiled nin? What'd you do?" he asked. Then Zoro sighed again. Must be a thing with him…

"Well, I honestly don't know of any good reason. The Otikage said that the village would be in danger if I was alive and no one said otherwise or gave a shit, so they ran me out."

"So what happened then?" I asked, impatient and ready to find out what happened to the kid. Honestly, by all known things, he shouldn't be alive with that wound.

"Sheesh! I'm telling you!" And he still had the energy to get angry, amazing… "Well, one of the teams was led by Domori Ritan-" I had to interrupt…

"Did you just say Domori Ritan? The sword ninja Domori Ritan, best in all of rock country?"

"Yeah," he sighed AGAIN, "he led the team that found me running. I managed to take care of the chunin easily, but him, not so much…"

"You're very lucky you're still alive," I interrupted, "I'm surprised he let you live when he was sent to kill you." And then, to my great surprise, he laughed!

"What makes you think I lost?" he questioned with a weird sort of grin on his face.

To which I responded, "You couldn't have possibly won. He's a jounin, you're a genin. He hasn't lost to anyone, not even other jounin, since he was your age."

"Well," he responded with a smirk, "as I told him, that's because he hadn't fought me yet." I couldn't believe it. Him? Winning against the best in the entire Rock Country!?

"Yeah. It was a tough fight. He gave me this," he told us, gesturing to his front, "and in return, I left him unconscious on the side of the road. It took me an entire day running and walking to make it here." As he told us this, I was not the only one surprised. All three of us had unbelieving looks on our faces. He looked amused, but also worn out. I

could tell that he needed rest, bad. Honestly, it amazed me that he was still conscious at that point.

**Shikamaru POV:**

While we were all sitting there mouths agape, Tsunade-Sama told us to leave, saying that Zoro need some rest. As we did, I couldn't help but think that yeah, he did the rest. It was amazing he was still conscious at all. Also, why was he run out with no one caring? What had happened other than Aunt and Uncle dying? I'd have to remember to ask him later on when he was better.

"Tsunade-Sama?" I asked. "What will he do? He can't really go back to the Ore if he's exiled."

She sighed and then responded, "I know. He can't go back, but it would be bad for our foreign affairs if we took in another village's exiled ninja, whatever the reason. Especially after last years chuunin exams… I guess the best thing to do would be to ask him if he'd like to be a shinobi here. If so, we should send him, with others in case of hostile actions by the Ore, to tell the Otikage-bastard," she giggled at her nickname for the Otikage, "that he's with us now and to take away his status as an exiled ninja if they wish to remain in good relations with Konoha."

"That could work. I'm worried about how they'll take it though. Why do you think they would hate him enough to exile him for no real reason? I know him, he wouldn't do anything bad enough to get exiled."

"I don't know," she sighed. "If he wishes to become a shinobi here, I'll talk with Kakashi about him joining Team 7. It only has 10 people after all."

"Yeah, when'll you ask him?" I asked her.

"Now, I'll go now. I'm pretty sure what your cousin's answer will be anyway."

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So, how was that?

Reviews would be appreciated…


	5. Team 7

Sorry I wrote 10 members last chapter! I meant 2 and I don't feel like changing it, so yeah…

I hope you liked the last chapter. R&R people!!! It's not that hard! Whether you like it or not, tell me. If you have any questions, I'll answer them the next chapter.

It might be a while 'till I update again since I'm grounded from using my computer though.

Disclaimer: Tee-hee! I don't own Naruto or Zoro… yet!

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**Zoro POV:**

I woke up as the Sun had just stopped rising to voices. One was the Hokage, and the other was a guys voice. I listened for long enough to pick up 'team 7 needs,' 'if he wants,' and 'fine with me,' before I finally let them know I was awake, 'cause I was hungry!

I tried to sit up, but the gray haired guy stopped me. "Don't push yourself," he told me. Moving hurt, so I laid back down.

"Have you eaten since you left Ore?" Tsunade-Sama asked. I grunted in response as my stomach rumbled.

"I'll take that as a no. Kakashi, can you get the boy some food?" she asked the gray haired man. Thankfully he agreed and left. It was nice yet weird for people to willingly do something nice for me.

The Hokage sighed before bluntly asking me, "Do you want to become a shinobi here or not?"

"If you'll let me," I responded.

"The man that's getting you food right now is the jounin in charge of Team 7. The members are Uzimaki Naruto and Haruno Sakura, both 14. The third member left the village and needs to be replaced. Hopefully, you'll get along well with them," she said, obviously relieved by my answer.

"Sounds great," I responded as Kakashi walked in carrying a large tray of food. I grinned my thanks to him and dug in, "Looks great!"

**Kakashi POV:**

So this was to be the newest member of Team 7. I wondered how he'd get along with Naruto and Sakura, mainly Sakura's reaction to getting a member to replace Sasuke. They'd get a chance to meet him later that day.

I was curious as to how he came to be here. Apparently all Tsunade-Sama knew was that he had been exiled from the Village Hidden in the Ore, name was Zoro, was 14 years old, beat the top sword ninja in Rock Country, and that he was Shikamaru's cousin. My extra mission was to learn more about him, for his file.

When I brought in the tray of food I'd picked up from the head nurse, he scarfed it up like he hadn't eaten in days! I chuckled.

"Kid, slow down. You're acting like you haven't eaten in days!"

"Really?" he asked, "There's a good reason for that," and kept on eating.

As he finished eating, Tsunade-Sama left the room and I sat down in the chair beside the bed.

"Hey," was my creative line.

"Hi," he responded, "So I'll be on your team now? Team 7. Please tell me about my team mates."

"Sure. You'll get the chance to meet them in about ½ an hour. I'm having them meet us here since you're in no condition to meet them anywhere else," I began. "Naruto is loud and obnoxious. Sakura may seem quiet, but don't piss her off."

"Uzimaki Naruto is on my team?" he asked. Damn, I thought, he must have heard.

"Yeah," I sighed, "I guess you've heard of him."

"Yeah… he carries the Kyuubi, right?"

"Yes, he does, but don't mention it to anyone. People have and some still treat him badly be-" he interrupted me.

"badly 'cause of it? I know. They don't anymore? Lucky him…"

"No. He was treated horribly for most of his life because of it. You wouldn't understand." I told him.

"Still, it seems like he's got it better than most jinchuriki."

"You know one?" I asked, curious.

"You could say that," he responded, and said nothing more.

This kid was peculiar. He seemed to know a lot about stuff, but didn't give anything about himself away. This whole time talking to him, I'd learned nothing about him other than that he hadn't eaten in at least a day and might know a jinchuriki. After a few minutes of silence, Naruto burst through the door, followed closely by Sakura. Zoro seemed confused by Naruto's attitude and almost seemed like he was studying him.

"Hi-ya, Zoro! So you're gonna be on our team?" Naruto said/asked exuberantly.

"Hello," Sakura said, seemingly trying to take in Zoro. I almost felt bad for him, he had only bandages on, not a shirt while Sakura was in the room. Almost, because of the way he was looking at Naruto.

"Zoro?" Naruto asked confusingly before looking at me. "He knows."

"Yeah," Zoro responded before Naruto finished walking to the door, "I don't really care. I'm just curious. You're really, I don't know, happy?"

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How was that? Was it good? It's a little longer than some of my past chapters.

Please R&R! (read & review, for those of you who don't already know)


	6. Team Time!

So, I hope you didn't find the last chapter too sucky… I thought it was just okay.

Thanks musicmiss18 for being my 1st signed in reviewer!

Disclaimer: Do I really have to tell you I don't own anime shows?!

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**Naruto POV:**

He doesn't care!? Everyone else (not many people), even if they now except me, at least cared that I'm the Kyuubi container! What's with this guy that he knows but doesn't care? And how does he know that my happiness is unusual for jinchuriki?

"Really? Okay… How'd you know? It's a pretty well kept secret?"

**Sakura POV:**

"Maybe it is here, but I've learned of them in the Ore."

I felt so out of the loop. What were they talking about? Zoro knew something about Naruto that's a well kept secret? Then how would he know, and why would Ore teach about Naruto!?

"Um…" I began, "What are you guys talking about?"

"Nothing!" both boys said at once.

I finally got a good look at Zoro, and honestly? He was hot! The bandages he had on only went to better define his muscles, of which he was not lacking by any means. He was probably stronger than Lee!

What had happened to him though? Tsunade-Sama already healed him, yet he was still bleeding a little bit. There was a thin stripe of red cutting across him chest. It was sure to leave a scar…

**Zoro POV:**

It was awkward the way Sakura was studying me. Naruto seemed alright once I told him I didn't care, but a little confused. He probably doesn't understand how I know so much. The secret must be well kapt, 'cause Sakura seemed to have no idea what we were talking about.

Kakashi cleared his throat, and when all eyes were on him, began, "Since we're all on the same team now, why don't we tell eachother about ourselves?" I think he just wanted information for my file.

"I'll go first," I said, "since you're probably curious. I use swords as my weapons, but can use other things, too."

"Like what?" Naruto asked impatiently. "Anything special?"

"I guess… I have 2 Keki Genkai."

"What!?" came cries from everyone in the room.

"Is that even possible?" Sakura asked.

"Apparently. My mom & dad each had one & passed them down to me. I have chakra swords and what most people would call telekenesis."

"Telekenesis?" Sakura asked. She was definetly the smarter of the 2. "Like moving stuff with your mind?"

"More or less, but with chakra." I responded, using it to pick up a pencil & poke Naruto (who was right in front of her, but couldn't see Kakashi) with it.

"Kakashi! Stop poking me!!! That is so immature!"

Sakura burst out laughing and I let out a small chuckle at his outburst.

"So, what about you two?"

About ½ an hour later, they finished telling me their strengths and Kakashi didn't really say anything about himself other than that he was strong…

**Kakashi POV:**

After all that, the kid looked pretty tired. No big shock there. Naruto & Sakura started bickering, then I noticed Zoro trying to sit up again.

"Zoro," I scolded. "You shouldn't push yourself. You're in bad condition. You shouldn'y even be able to move, or be alive for that matter." I did feel bad for him, being embarrassed in front of his new team like that, but anything else I said wouldn't have made a difference.

He snorted, "I'm not that bad," & managed to sit up, grimacing from the pain of it. "So, when will start doing missions as a team? I haven't been on a decent mission in at least a year."

Naruto & Sakura looked at him with a mixture of amazement, pity, & confusion.

"Well," I began, "as soon as you're healthy, but I expect that will be a few weeks."

"Why? I'll be fine in a few days." he asked.

Now it was my turn to laugh. Him, healthy in a few days!? He was nearly dead yesterday and could just sit up today 'cause of the pain of it. The only one who could heal that fast was Naruto.

"Kid, you were almost dead yesterday when you showed up at the gates. A few days won't do that much."

**Zoro POV:**

It was so annoying the way they doubted me. Sure, I wouldn't be completely healed by then, but the pain I could deal with. I'd just have to get over the tiredness. Damn was I tired, and I hadn't even been awake 2 hours.

"Kakashi?" I asked, "Could you please pass me the glass of water there?"

"Sure," he replied, passing me the glass, which I drained in a matter of seconds."

As I was listening to the others talk, a nurse came in, saying it was time to change my bandages.

"Zoro? Should we leave now?" Kakashi asked.

"I don't care," I told him. They were gonna be on my team, so they should see what happened, I thought. Kakashi helped me sit all the way up while the nurse beagn unwrapping the bandages on my torso. Naruto & Sakura, I noticed, had chosen to stay.

I heard a gasp from the 2 of them as the nurse got about ½ way through undoing the bandages. I opted for humor.

"What? Never seen a wound before?" I asked with a half-hearted smile on my face.

"A wound!?" Sakura asked. "That's not just 'a wound'. When Kakashi-Sensei said you were nearly dead yesterday, I thought he was overdramatizing everything. Turns out, he wasn't."

"Shit. What happened to you?" Naruto asked.

"Well, what do you guys already know?" I asked the 2 of them. Kakashi had already heard.

"That you showed up almost dead on the edge of the village yesterday and you're joining our team," Sakura told me. By the look on her face, she couldn't take her eyes off my chest & was trying to distract herself. How embarrassing…

"I was chased out of Ore, told I was now an exiled ninja for no real reason other than they hated me, pursued by 5 squads ordered to assassinate me, fought Domori Ritan," I saw the look on Sakura's face, "yes, that Domori Ritan, got this (I gestured to my front, which the nurse was nearly finished taking the bandages off of) and walked here. Then I passed out at the gate, someone brought me here, & I had a reunion with my cousin, who I hadn't seen for about 10 years."

By the looks on their faces, they thought I'd made the last part up. Naruto & Sakura both began talking at once. Kakashi shushed them, then most likely assuming Sakura's question would take longer to answer, told Naruto to say what he wanted.

"Cousin?" he asked, "You made that up, right?"

"No," I answered, humored that I had guessed their suspission correctly.

"Who?" Sakura asked.

"Shikamaru-Niisan," If only I'd had a camera to capture their reactions… They were struck speechless.

At that point, the nurse had taken the bandage off and Kakashi helped me back to a laying down position.

"Oh dear," the nurse clucked, "you seem to be bleeding again." _Oh really_, I thought. "I'll need to clean the wound again. Wait one second. I need to get some water, disinfectant, and another towel." She left for a bit. It was awkward. Kakashi was reading a perverted book, Naruto looked deep in thought, and Sakura was staring at my now bare chest. Very awkward. It did get me thinking though… she was pretty. As we were in our awkward situation, the walked back in carrying her stuff.

"Okay, brace yourself, honey. This'll hurt quite a bit."

As she pressed the towel to my chest, I winced a little. The nurse looked surprised that I offered no other reaction. Sakura's face was full of pity. When I noticed this, I rolled my eyes at her. When the nurse finished cleaning the blood off, she put on the disinfectant. It hurt a little more than just the water, but wasn't too bad. Once that was done, Kakashi helped me sit up so the nurse could bandage me up again.

Kakashi then went in the hallway to talk to the nurse. Both Sakura & Naruto shot me looks of pity. They did so for a few more minutes, 'till finally I was fed up.

"What!?" I cried exasperated.

"Nothing…" Sakura said.

"Damn you're hurt," Naruto said.

I rolled my eyes again. "Whatever. I'm tired now, so I'm gonna take a nap. Can you see if they can bring me some more food when I wake up?"

Naruto couldn't hellp but respond… "Okay. Hey, wanna see if I can get some Ichiraku ramen to go? It's the best! You have to try it!"

"Uh… sure," I told him, too tired to argue.

I quickly fell into a deep sleep.

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I know it's definetly not my best chapter, but I think it's alright.

Pleas R&R!!!

Oh yeah, I know how to spell an awesome word!

Supercalifragilisticexpialidocious! Yes, I'm just awesome like that!


	7. Questions & Ramen

I'm bored, so new chapter!

Disclaimer: I own my laptop, my homework , and some delicious rootbeer, nothing else… yet!

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**Zoro POV:**

When I woke up I felt a bit more refreshed. I noticed Naruto jumping excitedly into the room, dragging someone else in. Who would he be bringing in? My question was answered as soon as he entered.

"Oi, Shikamaru!" I greeted him, nice to see you again.

"Um… How do you feel?" he asked.

"A lot better, can't wait 'till they let me out though," I told him.

"Hey!" Naruto interrupted. "Tsunade-Baachan said that if you said you were feeling better at all, you could go out to eat with us as long as you came back shortly, 'cause she thought not letting you out wouldn't do anything. You'd get out anyway, wouldn't you?"

"Maybe…" I told him, "Sounds great, but does anyone have a shirt I could wear? I don't really want to go out into town with only bandages on."

"Yep! Here," Naruto said, throwing me a black t-shirt. Naruto was smaller, with less muscles, so it was very tight on me and completely outlined my muscles as well as bandages.

"A little tight, but it'll do for now." I told them while climbing out of the bed. I was a little wobbly for a second, but then I was fine. "So, where's this amazing place you were telling me about?"

"Not too far! Follow me!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Oh man, what a bother… Zoro? Naruto's always this excitable, especially when it comes to ramen, so consider yourself warned."

"Ramen? Ok…" I responded. Ramen was just okay, I preferred sashimi but ramen was fine, too. Especially when Naruto learned he was paying. I hadn't had time to get my stuff when I was chased out of Ore. All I had of my own now were my swords, shoes, and pants. A little while later we arrived at a small ramen shop, run by a young girl and an all man.

"Hey old man!" Naruto exclaimed as we sat down. "I'd like my usual and um, what do you guys want? My treat!" I was really hungry, so I hoped he had brought some money…

"I'd like miso pork ramen," Shikamaru ordered.

"Me, too," I told the man. I hadn't had ramen in a while so, why not? Also, I was still tired. Maybe this was Tsunade's way of telling me I still needed rest…

A few minutes and bowls of ramen later, Shikamaru broke the silence. "Why were you run out of Ore? There has to be a better reason than the Otikage didn't like you." What I'd said earlier was true, but not all of it. Since Shikamaru was family and Naruto wouldn't judge me on it, I decided I'd tell them, but not while others were around.

"I'll tell you guys one day," I simply stated, "maybe…"

**Naruto POV:**

"Why won't you tell us?" I asked impatiently. He sighed.

"Would you tell your friends your secret!?" he boldly asked. The nerve of the bastard. What I wouldn't tell anyone meant a heck of a lot. If he commited a crime, the worse that would happen was Tsunade would have people keep an eye on him!

"No! But that's different!"

"So you think yours is bigger? Worse!?"

"Hell ya! You know what it is and should understand!" I yelled. He was being such an ass…

"I do," he sighed, "but that doesn't make a difference. We should go now."

**Shikamaru POV:**

After their argument, Zoro calmly walked out the restaurant. What were they talking about though? Naruto's secret? I noticed as Zoro walked out, that he wasn't exactly stable. He looked like he was going to collapse against a wall any second.

"Zoro!" I yelled. "Wait a second." I went to where he was standing. When I got there, he started walking again, but after a few minutes, he wobbled.

"Hmph," he grunted as I shot him a worried glance. "I'm fine."

"No, you're not," I argued. "Do that one more time and I'm gonna have to help you back to the hospital."

"Fine, but I'm alright. I won't stu-" he stopped, obviously in pain. He put a hand on my shoulder, using me as a support as he tried to gain control of his body again. Pretty soon, he was standing up, panting.

"Sorry 'bout that," he told me, still obviously hurting, "just hurt for a minute." He then tried to start walking again.

"No," I said, standing right in front of him. "You shouldn't be putting stress on your body like this." As I said this I put my arm under his and began to support some of his weight, making it easier for him to walk. He was still obviously hurting.

As we reached the hospital, I saw Tsunade-Sama standing near the door. When she saw me helping Zoro, she didn't look surprised.

"Shikamaru, did Naruto say that I told him Zoro could leave?"

"Yes, Tsunade-Sama," I told her, getting a feeling that Naruto didn't really ask.

"Huh?" Zoro said. "You didn't really?"

"Did you think I'd really let you out in that condition? I'm amazed you're still awake, and not crying out from pain. Well, let's get you back in your room. I'll talk with Naruto later."

Yep. Naruto made it up. Why was I not surprised… When we got to Zoro's room, he gratefully got into bed, looking entirely worn out. As soon as Tsunade-Sama was srue he was asleep, you looked to me and asked, "Did he tell you anything about himself?"

"No. Wait, Naruto didn't really make it all up, did he?" I asked, suspicious.

"Well," she began, "he was going to, so I asked him if he would see if he could get anything out of him. The kid won't tell us anything." Then, we heard someone speak.

"You know, it's rude to talk about someone like they're not there." Zoro was still breathing evenly, looking perfectly asleep, yet just spoke to us.

"How?" we both asked.

"Easy, just pretended to be asleep. I've gotten a lot of practice back in Ore and learned some interesting stuff, and managed to break some assassination attempts early on."

"Assassination attempts?" I asked.

"Yep," and just as I was about to ask on who, he said, " On me."


	8. Romance?

So, how was that last chapter?

Disclaimer: If I owned Naruto, Zoro would be a character in it!

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**Shikamaru POV:**

There had been assassination attempts on Zoro? Did that have anything to do with why he was run out of the village?

"Zoro?" I asked, "You said earlier that there was another reason you were run out. What was it?"

"Not another reason, just a reason why they hate me so much."

"What?" Tsunade-Sama asked, "Why would they hate you that much? Did you do something?"

"**I** didn't do anything," he told us, emphasis on I. Looked like he wasn't gonna tell us anything more then.

**Zoro POV:**

There was no way I was going to tell them, at least for a long while. Who knows? They could have me run out, too. If what Naruto said was true, people still treated him like that for a long time, and his secret was well kept.

"I'm gonna sleep now," I bluntly told them before falling into a deep sleep.

I woke up quite a while later. By the feel of it, my bandages had been changed while I slept, and by the feeling in my stomach, I'd been asleep for about a day. I sat up without much pain, at least not enough that I'd show it hurt. Just as I started getting really impatient, the rest of Team 7 walked in.

"Hey!" I greeted them. Naruto still looked pissed…

"Hello Zoro. How are you feeling? You've been asleep for a while," Sakura asked.

"Fine," I told her. "When will they let me out? I'm good now!"

"Really?" Kakashi asked. To prove his point that I wasn't, he walked up to me and poked my chest, poking my wound as well. It hurt, but not much. Guess his point wasn't proven as well as he thought it would be… I barely winced.

"If that's the case, we'll be heading out to Ore tomorrow. I'm afraid I won't be able to join you, but some others will be going with you 3 as well. Shikamaru and Kiba will also be going. You know Shikamaru already. He'll be the chuunin leader."

"Ugh… Do I really have to go back and talk to that bastard?" I asked.

"Yes," Kakashi sighed, "you do. You need to discuss things with the Otikage. It's all for affairs between the villages. It could be bad for Konoha, taking in another village's exiled ninja. We just need you to talk with him. It won't be long."

"Fine," I grumbled, then looked up, a little embarrassed. "Can you bring me some food?"

"I'll get some!" Sakura said.

**Sakura POV:**

Damn! I needed to stop staring at him! He wouldn't like me anyways. He was just really hot… I thought about him again! Damn it! It was just a crush, but I couldn't help it. I liked him. At least I was no longer in the room with him. Now I didn't have to resist the temptation of staring at his beautifully sculpted chest… Also, this way I was doing something useful, getting him food. I finally got to the nurses station.

"Hello. Is there any food here for the patient Zoro?" I asked.

"Last name?"

"No one here knows," I told the nurse.

"Well, I'll get some right now. Hang on a second." A minute later she was back, caring a full tray of food.

"Thank you!" I told her as she passed me the tray. I noticed the small flower on the side. Was every girl here infatuated with him?

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Next day! (sorry, I got impatient…)

**Tsunade POV:**

At about 7 in the morning, I got up and headed to the hospital. I was going to release Zoro and needed to get his family name for the files. When I walked into the room, I saw him snoring.

"Zoro?" I said softly.

"Hm? Hello Tsunade. Can you please let me out now?" little butt was probably pretending to be asleep again…

"Yeah. Do you have any money for supplies and a shirt? Also, where are you staying? We can get you an apartment, but I'll need your family name for the files." Hopefully he'd tell me…

"No money. Dunno where I'm staying. I'd appreciate the apartment."

"Name?" I asked him.

"Roronoa Zoro."

"Okay. I can give you some money to get a shirt. You'll have to ask the others on your team for kunai, shuriken, and exploding tags," I told him.

"Thanks! I don't the other stuff though. I use my swords usually. If I need more supplies, I can nag 'em from my opponent!" Steal them? Was that why people hated him?

"Nag 'em?"

"Bloodline limit. Sort of like telekinesis. If I need to, I can pull some out of my opponents pouch."

"Oh. Well, you can go now. You are to meet at the gate in 2 hours. Don't be late." He had a bloodline limit? Well, more stuff for his file…

**Zoro POV: **

Finally! I was allowed out of the hospital. Shirt shopping would be a pain in the ass though… I didn't have a shirt to wear while getting one. As I walked through the streets in search of a clothing vendor, I noticed most the girls staring at me. Awkward change from everyone hating me… I noticed Sakura walking down the street as well.

"Sakura!" I yelled. When she got near, I saw she looked very surprised. At least she tried to stop staring at my chest. Did she… did she have a _crush _on me? "Can you help me find a place where I can buy a shirt?"

"Uh… Sure, what type?"

"Plain white, a little loose."

"Sure! I know a place you can get one of those. Do you have money?" she asked.

"Yep. Tsunade gave me some to get a shirt with. She also said something about you being her apprentice and changing bandages?"

"Uh, yeah… She said that I should change your bandages every day," she told me, suddenly looking embarrassed.

"All right. Thanks! So, we're supposed to meet at the gate soon?" I asked her, trying to help her feel less awkward as I bought a shirt from the shop she brought me to.

"Yes. We should be there in ½ an hour."

"Okay. Let's go. We can talk for a while before the others get there," I suggested.

"Okay. Come on!"

"Thank you. You'll need to show me where it is. I was unconscious when I went through Konoha last…" I admitted awkwardly. Somehow Sakura was very easy to talk to. I felt very comfortable around her. Was I beginning to develop a crush on her as well?

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Sorry for the bad chapter people! I'm sorta having writers block. I know what I want to happen later on, but these other parts are boring and I don't like them much. It'll get better!

Zoro: What happens next?

Sakura: Do Zoro and I get 'together'?

Zoro: *blushes*

Me: Maybe… A torture scene will be in probably 2 chapters. That torture warning might finally mean something!!!

Naruto: Who's tortured???

Me: That's for me to know and you to find out!

READ AND REVIEW PEOPLE!!! IF YOU DO, I'LL TELL YOU WHO GETS TORTURED LIKE NARUTO WANTS TO KNOW!!!


	9. Pain & Secrets

So, thank you for reviewing! I finally got reviews!!!

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Zoro… Do I really need to tell you?

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**Zoro POV:**

After not too long, we were at the gate. Shikamaru was already there. He looked a little surprised when he saw Sakura & I coming up together.

"Hey Zoro," he greeted. "You sure you're ready to be on a mission?"

"I'm fine!" I told him, rolling my eyes, "wish I didn't have to talk with that bastard though…"

"Why does he hate you?" Sakura asked.

"Well, everyone in Ore hates me," I bluntly stated.

"Why?" Shikamaru asked. "That's all you told me and Naruto as well."

"Maybe I'll tell you guys one day," I told them. Dang! They were all so nosy!

**Sakura POV:**

Zoro was very secretive. Was he not telling us 'cause he just didn't want to or because he was afraid of what would happen if he did?

"Ok…" I said, sort of disappointed. Just as I did, Kiba & Naruto walked up.

"Hi Shikamaru ,hey Sakura-Chan!" Naruto greeted me, then grumbled, "Zoro…"

**Zoro POV:**

Looked like he was still pissed…

"What?" I asked. "Are you still mad about that?"

"Hell yes I am! You are such a bastard!" he yelled. I sighed. That was how I was used to being treated. Well, if he then tried to kill me it would be.

"Whatever. We should get going," I stated, then began to walk.

"Do you know how to get there?" the boy who must have been Kiba asked?

"Well, I should, since I walked all the way from there to here," I told him.

**Sakura POV:**

After we'd been walking for about a day and were getting ready to set up a place for the night, Zoro stopped abruptly and asked, "What do you want?"

"What do you m-" he cut me off. "Not you! We're surrounded!"

"What!?" Naruto exclaimed. "How do you know?"

"I hear them," he stated. Personally, I heard nothing unusual and my hearing was pretty good. Just as I was about to tell him he was making up crap, I man walked out of the woods.

"I'm amazing you sensed us. Are you Roronoa Zoro?" he asked. Why did he want to know if Zoro was Zoro? Why did he care? Zoro remained perfectly calm.

"Yes. I am. Why do you care?" placing a hand on the hilt of one of his swords, he demanded, "leave… now." The man in front of us sighed.

"I can't. I've been hired to capture you and whoever you are with. My client wants to ask you a few questions."

"How would you capture us?" Zoro asked.

"Well, I'd start out with the 50 jounin surrounding you." 50 jounin? I had no idea anyone else was there.

Zoro began, "I was wondering when they'd show themselves," as he drew a sword. "ready when you are," he said as took out his 3rd sword and attacked. 5 men popped out from the cover of the trees and Zoro easily got through them. As I was watching, I didn't notice the man sneak up behind me. When I finally noticed him, I screamed. Too late, he had me.

The man laughed. "If you don't want the girl to die, turn yourself in Roronoa Zoro." I was pissed! Zoro & everyone else was gonna get captured because I had slipped up and gotten captured.

Completely against my expectations, (I hardly knew the guy) Zoro sighed and sheathed his swords. Everyone else just stood there. That was all I knew before I blacked out. The bastards didn't want us to know where we were being taken.

When I woke up a few hours later, my head was throbbing. We had all been brought into a dark cell and chain to the wall in an uncomfortable sitting position. After a time of sitting in silence, another man walked in.

"Hello," he said to all of us, though obviously focused on Zoro, "we want some information from the demon kid." Naruto immediately tensed up as did Zoro. "Roronoa Zoro, you'll be coming with me. And don't even think about trying to run away. You'd probably make it, but your friends would be left behind. I could easily kill them." Zoro looked royally pissed as the man unchained him and led him out of the room.

"So," I asked, "what do they want with Zoro?" No one seemed to have an answer. We were all silent for about ½ an hour, when the door to the cell was opened up. Zoro was thrown in, then the man followed. Why was Zoro not standing? Don't tell me they…

"Who want to tend to the boy?" the man asked, kicking Zoro towards us. Zoro let out a grunt, and we saw his back.

"Uh, I will," I nervously volunteered. I was the only med nin of the group, so it only made sense. Once I had been unchained, the man gave me a bowl of water, then spoke, "if you're a medical ninja, don't use your chakra to heal him. If you do, one of the others will suffer for it," he stated before walking out of the room. Every person in the room looked towards Zoro, worried expressions filling their faces. I took a deep breath before approaching Zoro.

"Zoro?" I asked, hoping Zoro was all right enough to be able to respond.

"What?" he grunted, his voice a bit hoarse. He was facing away from me, so I turned him over enough that his back was completely towards me before pressing the bowl to his lips.

"Your voice is hoarse. Take a sip," I ordered. He obliged. Then I began again, "Is your front all right?" If it was anything like his back, it was pretty bad. It would be worse though, since his front hadn't completely healed.

"Yeah, it's fine. He only hurt my back," Zoro told me, his pain evident, though not as much as I would have expected. I began washing off his back. "He whipped you…" I murmured as I cleaned off the lines on his back. Once I was done with that, I pulled out some bandages from my pack. At least I'd brought extra bandages for the wound on his front. If I hadn't, I wouldn't have been able to bandage him up.

"Here, let me help you up. I need to bandage you up," I told him.

"No," he argued. "I can get up on my own."

As he began to sit up, I put my arms around him and helped him up, leaving no room for protest. When I had finished wrapping him up, I helped him lay down again.

"So…" Naruto said, breaking the silence, "why did he do this to you?" All of a sudden, Zoro looked away, looking almost, nervous? "and why did you tense up when he said demon kid?" Naruto looked honestly curious.

Zoro finally sighed and stared towards the ceiling. "Well," he said, "it's the same answer for both."

When he offered no more information, I softly asked, "What is that reason?"

"Nothing," he murmured, and then said in a firmer tone, "I'm tired. I'm gonna sleep now," before nodding off, his head in my lap. We remained like this for a while before the guy who did this to Zoro walked in. All of us tensed up, and Zoro woke up.

"How are you all?" he asked in a too cheerful to be real voice.

"Cut the crap, bastard," Zoro growled. "What do you want?"

"Oh, just to talk to you," Zoro tensed as the guy said this, "and find out more about Santou." Santou? Wasn't that a demon? Why would he be asking Zoro about that?

"Well," Zoro began, "as I won't tell you anything, that would be useless." The guy was torturing Zoro to find out about some demon?

"Bastard!" I yelled, "Why are you asking him about some demon? He probably knows less than you do about it!" Zoro chuckled.

"No, I know more than most about it, but I also know, or can guess, who hired him to find out. I'd rather them not know," Zoro told me. Confusing…

"Who?" I asked. "Ore?"

"No. An organization you've probably never even heard of."

"Then tell me," I said, curious. "If we've never heard of it, why not tell us?"

"Because," he said, "Naruto probably has heard of them." Naruto knowing something I didn't? That wouldn't happen…

"What?" the bastard bellowed. "So you guessed I was hired by the Akatsuki? Correct. Why does it matter? There's never been a person I haven't broken. I don't intend for you to be any different." The guy then proceeded to chain us up again. As he did, I was secretly glad. He at least wasn't gonna hurt Zoro again. Once he finally left the room, I noticed that Naruto had a look of confusion mixed with disbelief on his face.

"So," Naruto began in a dazed voice, "when you said you understood, you understood perfectly. No wonder you knew when we first met that it was weird…"

"Yeah," Zoro said. "Don't tell though? Be glad the Akatsuki didn't know you'd be here too."

"Uh huh…" Naruto said softly.

Finally tired of having no clue what they were taking about, I burst. "What the hell are you 2 talking about!?"

"Well," Zoro sighed, "the same organization is after both Naruto and I."

"Why? That didn't answer my question. I figured that much out!" I asked, really annoyed.

"That's nothing you need to know, Sakura-Chan," Naruto said. "And Zoro? Is this why your village hated you?" When Zoro grunted his yes, Naruto responded, "Yeah, I was treated sorta the same way, but I finally made friends."

"Lucky you…" said Zoro, before dozing off again. It seemed Zoro had the ability to sleep anytime, anywhere. Now that I thought about what they'd been saying, I realized that Naruto had been an outcast when he was younger as well. Did that have something to do with their secrets?

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I hope you guys like this chapter! It's a little longer than my others.

Me: What do you think? Orderly answers please. Zoro first.

Zoro: You didn't actually tell my secret, but any fan of the show Naruto gets it Damn you!!!

Me: Um… next, before Zoro blows.

Naruto: Weird

Me: _Thanks_

Sakura: Why'd you hurt Zoro? And what the hell is the secret!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?

Me: You'll find out later!!!

Shikamaru: I'm barely in this chapter. You barely mentioned me and Kiba. What could that mean…

Me: No offense, but you two weren't important this chapter

Kiba: bitch…

Me: Don't worry Kiba, you'll never be a big character! R&R people! No flames please, but constructive criticism is appreciated. Also, ideas are welcome. They may or may not be used.


	10. The Pain of Torture

YaY! 10th chapter! Do the crazy awesomenez dance!

I have no homework tonight, so I'm adding a new chapter. Also, I personally love my story & am a big believer in the famous quotation, "If you want to read something that has yet to be written, write it yourself." I hope you like my story as much as I do…

Disclaimer: I don't own Naruto or Zoro, but I do own my right to love the song 6 feet under the stars, by all time low!

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**Zoro POV:**

When I woke up, I felt like shit, but a little better than before. It didn't help that my back was pressed against a wall though…

"Zoro?" I heard a voice say.

"Yeah, Sakura?" I responded.

"H-how are you f-feeling?" she stuttered out. She seemed really worried. I lightly smiled.

"I'm fine, better than last time I was awake," I told her, not knowing how long I'd been out.

"Okay… You've been asleep for a while," she told me. Just as she finished, the door opened. Everyone tensed. It was the bastard. Damn would I like to kick his ass…

"Hello. Zoro, you're coming with me now," he ordered as he unlocked my chains. When he saw the pissed off look in my eyes, he added, "if you attack me, one of your friends suffers for it." Yup, he pissed me off more and more every damn time he opened his mouth! But still, I couldn't attack him or he'd hurt the others. Whatever happened, I wouldn't let the others get hurt. It was my fault they were here in the first place, so I got up, a little shakily at first, and then walked out of the room behind the bastard.

"Damn you coward," Naruto yelled, "using his friendship with us as a shield like that! You're just a freaking sadistic wimp!" I grinned as he said that, glad someone was putting the bastard in his place. I was still glad, even when he kicked me over and pulled out a knife, stabbing my side with it. Even though it hurt, I was glad Naruto dissed the bastard. Since I couldn't fight back without them being hurt, I was glad Naruto was making the bastard mad. He deserved it, even if I got hurt more 'cause of it.

**Sakura POV:**

Damn it! If only I hadn't gotten caught by one of the attackers! Then Zoro wouldn't be suffering for it! Also, why did he know so much about the demon that an organization would be targeting him for it? And what did Naruto have to do with it? Why was Naruto insulting the guy? If he didn't, Zoro wouldn't get hurt as much. Naruto needed to learn to keep his thoughts in sometimes!

A minute later, the bastard made Zoro get up and follow him out. I could see the blood running down Zoro's side…

Once Zoro'd been gone for a few minutes, Shikamaru spoke, "So, we need to find a way to get out of here. Does anyone know the layout of this building at all?" When we all murmured no, he began again, "Then before we make a plan, I'll ask Zoro about the building. He knows more about it than we do. He's the only one who's been conscious outside of this cell." Just as we agreed, something that sounded like a muffled scream could be heard echoing through the halls.

Kiba was the first to speak, "Was that Zoro?"

"I don't know," I said softly, trying to make myself believe it wasn't. Even though none of us wanted to believe it was Zoro, we were pretty sure it was. We all remained silent, worrying about him. After about 10 minutes of silence, Naruto burst out, "Why is the Akatsuki after Zoro right now!? It should be me, not him, a new Konoha shinobi…" muttering the last part.

"Naruto, what is this 'Akatsuki' and what do they want with you two?" I asked him.

"Nothing you need to worry about," he responded, seeming a little embarrassed and annoyed at himself for saying all that.

"Okay," I told him, not really up to arguing right then. There were more important things to deal with. The solemn silence continued for a while longer when the door creaked open.

"Here's the bastard," he told us, tossing an obviously hurting, barely conscious Zoro into the room. He grunted as he hit the ground. The bastard turned to me.

"Bitch, you wanna tend to 'im again?" he asked. I nodded my assent, letting the name go. It didn't matter as long as I could help Zoro…

"Hey, bastard," I heard a voice, Zoro? Say, "Don't call her a bitch! She's better than you'll ever be!" What!? Did he just defend me? But that could get him hurt… And it did. The bastard kicked his side, right where he had stabbed him earlier. Zoro tensed up some and winced, but not much. He was probably too out of it to really feel it… Again, the guy unchained me, gave me a bowl of water, then left, leaving a weakened Zoro as the only sign he'd been there.

As I walked over, I surveyed the damage. It looked like he had a few stabs, was whipped on his front, and had a few burns on his left arm.

"Hey," I weakly said. I didn't have the energy to put more thought into a greeting. I was too preoccupied not huddling up in a corner, freaking out. Zoro wouldn't be helped out that way.

"Hey to you, too," he managed to say weakly, "Damn am I tired…" What was with him, that when he was hurt so badly, he'd focus on something else? As I knelt down beside him, I rolled my eyes.

"Then sleep," I said, giving him the obvious answer. He chuckled.

"Can't right now."

"Why not?"

"Just cant right now," he murmured, then winced from all the talking.

"Oh, that's why…" I said. He was hurting too much to sleep. He nodded. The small motion obviously caused him pain, though he wouldn't show it.

I was about to speak again when he randomly said, "I really hate that bastard." Everyone in the room gave some sort of an agreement.

"The bastard deserves to die!"

"Damn bastard…"

"Bastard, doing that shit to Zoro!"

"Uh-huh"

A moan from Zoro as I began to clean one of the deeper lashes on his front…

"Zoro, tell me if he did anything else, ok? I see a few stabs, a few burns on your left arm, and a bunch of whip wounds on your front. Is there anything else?" I asked, trying to keep my tone calm and professional, but he saw right through it.

"That's it," he smiled up at me, trying to reassure me. I felt a little better until the door cracked open a bit. Zoro tensed.

"Oh, I forgot. If you tell me what I want to know, I'll give you all food. It's been 3 days at the least since any of you have eaten, in case you didn't know," the bastard said before leaving.

As soon as he left, I began cleaning Zoro's front again. Instead of tensing up against the pain and wincing when I touched his front to clean the wounds, he tensed, then immediately relaxed. Me touching the wounds was obviously not pleasant, yet he relaxed when I did! I was very confused. When I pulled my hand away to clean the rag and wet it again, his body moved towards me almost.

"Zoro?" I asked, a little confused. Maybe he was just asleep and someone kindly touching him just felt nice.

"Yeah?" he asked.

"How bad is it?"

"Huh? How bad is what?"

"The pain? You're not reacting to it as much as I thought you would," I told him, also curios to see the reason.

"It hurts," was all he said. As much as I tried not to, I snorted. He chuckled at that.

"Well duh, of course it hurts. I asked how bad," I said while cleaning another lash on his front.

"Um, how much does it look like it hurts?" he asked.

"Like it feels like hell," I told him.

"Well, that's pretty accurate," he said, wincing, as I saw something in one of the stabs.

"Zoro?" I asked, my hand on top of the wound, "Is there salt in here?"

"I guess. He rubbed somethin' that stung on it," he told me. Seriously, how would he not know? He was very calm about everything, something I found very strange.

"Okay," I responded, trying to dig as much of the salt out as possible. After a few more minutes, I finished his front, and moved to his arm. As I picked it up to put on my lap, I must have touched one of the burns, though it didn't look like I had, 'cause he winced.

"Careful," he told me weakly, "almost the whole arm is burned." I gasped slightly at the news, though he obviously didn't want pity. He looked the other way as I did. By the look on his face, he just barely decided to tell me.

"Sorry," I told him, "I'll be gentle." And I was. I lightly held the arm when it wasn't on my lap and tried to clean it as gently as possible, though it clearly hurt a lot. When I was almost dome cleaning his arm, I asked him the question that had been stuck in my mind since he'd told me his whole arm was burnt.

"Zoro? How is almost your whole arm burnt?"

"Metal sheets that were stuck in a fire and left wrapped on my arm 'till they were fused into a tube," he bluntly told me. I gasped again. He just rolled his eyes this time.

"But Zoro," I began, "the burns in that case would be at least 2nd degree, if not 3rd!"

"Feels like it," he murmured as I finished cleaning his arm, even more gently than before, and began wrapping it up. When I was done with that, I looked at Zoro.

"Zoro-kun," I mistakenly said, my face flushed scarlet, "I mean Zoro! Sorry… I'm gonna help you sit up now to get some bandages around you, okay? No trying to get up yourself. You're in no condition."

"Uh, sure," he said. To my great joy, he didn't mention my blunder, though his face was red from a blush. As I helped him up, I noticed something strange. Though I had expected the wounds on his back to be bleeding, they were bleeding as much as if they were fresh wounds.

"Um, Zoro?" I asked, "Why is your back bleeding as if the wounds are fresh?"

**Zoro POV:**

"'Cause he opened them," I told her, looking away ever so slightly.

"How?" she asked, the worry plain in her voice. I'd noticed it earlier, but it was a little weirder now that she had all but admitted she liked me. What made it more confusing, was the fact that I wasn't sure if I liked her or not.

"Uh, you don't want to know," I told her, because honestly? She didn't.

"Yeah. Even if it's bad, I want to know," she said. I sighed. It was her fault if she didn't like what she heard.

So I told her, as bluntly as I could. "Some of them he used a whip and lashed the same place again. Other places," I paused before telling her, not wanting her to know. She would get really worried when worrying was useless. What's done is done, "he, he prodded his fingers into them and twisted around to open them up wider." I heard her gasp, "Others, he took a knife and traced them lightly, then cut down as far as the knife would go. Happy!?"

"W-What?" she asked, obviously freaked out.

"Yeah…" I lightly said, a bit sorry I'd freaked her out so much, but she'd asked. Then, suddenly, she wrapped her arms around me, attempting to comfort me, I guess. The problem was, the hug hurt. When I tensed and gritted my teeth together, she stopped.

"Sorry…" she said, obviously embarrassed.

"It's alright. You just forgot about the wounds for a second," I told her.

"You're not mad?" she asked, sounding confused, though I was the one who should have been confused.

"Mad? No. but very confused," when she was about to say something, I said,"Why'd you hug me?"

"What do you mean? I was worried, and momentarily forgot about all your wounds," she said.

"'kay…"

"What?" she asked me, "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong," I told her.

"Then why'd you act so weird?"

Looking up at the ceiling, I told her, "Never been hugged since I was 5." Again everyone gasped, and I sighed.

"Because of THAT?" Naruto asked.

"I guess. When people think you're a horrible monster, they usually don't hug you a lot," I said. Everyone else in the room just looked confused. Sakura hugged me again, but more gently than last time, and trying not to touch my left arm. I melted right into her and began to fall asleep when Shikamaru spoke.

"Sorry, but do you know what the building's layout is at all?"

When I was about to answer, Sakura spoke up, still holding me, "He's exhausted! He's just gone though a lot, so just let him rest!"

"As I said, I'm really sorry, but it's for Zoro's own good. The sooner we get out of her the better." When it looked like Sakura was about to protest again, I spoke.

"Sakura, it's fine. Well, I don't know much, but this room is right off a long hallway. The room he, uh brings me to is off a smaller hallway. I don't know where the exit is, but my guess is it's off of the hallway we're on," I told Shikamaru, exhausted. I began to lose control over my body, and began to fall a little. Sakura was now completely supporting me. She then laid me down so that my head was in her lap and stroked my hair even though it was nasty with grime, blood, and sweat. After a short while, I fell asleep.

__________________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

YaY! It's a long chapter! The longest yet!

I hope you all like it! Please R&R!

Me: So, since so much happened this chapter, what do you think?

Zoro: I hate it

Me: 'Cause you're torured? Don't worry, at least I tried to make you look brave.

Zoro: Hmph. I still hate you

Sakura: Why'd you hurt Zoro?

Me: Well, it is a TORTUE FIC!

Shikamaru: It's fine, I guess.

Me: Thank you. Finally, a nice character review.

Kiba: I hate you, bitch!!!

Me: In case you didn't notice, after you called me that last time, I didn't even mention you!

Kiba: Damn you!

Me: Tsk Tsk, Kiba. Foul language! *sticks tongue out*


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